Hi Everybody,
Thanks so much for visiting my blog. It's really appreciated when there is so much else to grab your attention. We're in the middle of a detailed discussion on the meaning of nam myoho renge kyo, the mantra that we chant as Nichiren Buddhists morningn and evening. It is the title of the Lotus Sutra written in classical Japanese, with the addition of what is called the committal word, nam, which means basically I commit to, or I believe in. So we've talked about nam. We've talked at some length about myoho. And we've come to renge.
Renge means lotus flower, but most significantly it also means cause and effect. The lotus flower adopted as the title of Shakyamuni's ultimate teaching is an immensely significant symbol in Buddhism for many reasons. It is a plant with a particularly beautiful flower and it happens to grow and flourish with its flower and leaves floating on the surface of the water and its roots dangling into the mucky muddy conditions on the bottom of the pond. In this sense it is seen to symbolise the great potential locked up in every human life; the promise that we can build strong and positive and flourishing lives, however difficult the circumstances and environments we find our lives rooted in. Moreover the lotus happens to carry both blossoms and seed pods at the same time, simultaneously today's flower and the seeds of tomorrow's plants. In this sense it is seen to symbolise one of the fundamental and most important principles of Buddhism known as the simultaneity of cause and effect.
Once again it is a principle with which Buddhism asks us to challenge the way we are accustomed to thinking about everyday lives and relationships. Basically it argues every cause we make, good bad and indifferent, plants a balancing effect in our lives. That effect Buddhism argues, will, sooner or later, make itself felt in our lives, without fail. Thus there is for all of us an on-going chain of causes and effect. That is if you like thr fundamental dynamic of our lives. It ties together for each one of us, the past, the present and the future.
Buddhism argues that it is only be coming to understand this constant linkage, that we can grasp fully what it means to take responsibility for our actions, and to seek to change those inherent tendencies in our life that are causing us to suffer. So it is a fundamental teaching that carries with it all sorts of implications, since we are of course, making causes all the time, both within our own lives and in relation to those us, all day every day, in everything we think and say and do. Good causes, good effects. Bad causes, bad effects.
Enough I think to chew over for today.
Back during the week to conclude the renge section.
All my best wishes, and gratitude for your being here.
William
PS The Case for Buddhism is available as a hold in the hand paper back from Amazon or as a read-on-the-screen download from Kindle.
Sunday 28 February 2016
Saturday 20 February 2016
my buddhist blog number 124
Hi Everybody,
Hope all is well with you. Thanks for coming to the blog. I try hard to keep it going at least once a week, but it's been really busy this week completing a script. So to recap, we're in the middle of what I think is a really important section exploring the meaning of myoho in the mantra we chant, nam myoho renge kyo. I notice I give fully 5 pages to this section which is an indication of how important an understanding of this phrase is to the practice. Anyway, we've reached the cart and horses!! This is an analogy that is often used because it presents such a graphic picture of the relationship between the myo and the ho aspects of our life.
So, our life is the cart and it's pulled along by our myo horse, or our deepest spiritual energy, and our ho horse, our physical life. In general it's true to say that we are accustomed to spending a great deal of time and effort nurturing the strength and the well-being of our ho horse, because of course it is so visible and so accessible to us. We can look at it in the mirror for example and worry about its shape! We can feed it three times a day and take it to the gym to work out and off to play sports to ensure that it is kept fit and healthy and suitably diverted. As a result we tend very much to equate our happiness and our sense of satisfaction with life with how well we are getting on with looking after our ho horse.
By contrast we tend to spend relatively little time, if any, nurturing and exercising our myo horse, because of course it is wholly unseen and and in general has a less powerful presence. The result is a gross imbalance in the pulling power of these two dimensions of our life. The wagon of our life is pulled off strongly in one direction dictated by our physical needs, our strong ho horse. Indeed it is often pulled round in circles, repeating patterns of behaviour, because the spiritual side of our make-up hasn't been nurtured enough to influence, to change that is, our habitual behaviour. We can, as we all know so well, become very much creatures of habit, tending to repeat patterns of thought and behaviour even when they lead to considerable pain and suffering in our lives. People very often for example, go through a whole series of similar relationships each one of which might follow a very similar pattern of rise and fall.
What we need to do, Buddhism tells us, is to become aware of the effects of this gross imbalance between the strength of our physical and spiritual lives, and so allocate more time and energy to keeping both horses, the myo as well as the ho, in a fit and active and healthy state.
That is very much the role that is played by the daily Buddhist practice, it is the regular daily work out for our myo horse.
That's plenty enough for this episode.
Next time we are on to renge.
Hope to see you then.
With all my best wishes,
William
PS The Case for Buddhism is available on Amazon and as a download on Kindle and if you read it and enjoy it, I would be immensely grateful if you would be prepared to put a few words into into the review section. Readers reviews are apparently a very powerful factor in encouraging new readers. And please accept my gratitude in advance!
Hope all is well with you. Thanks for coming to the blog. I try hard to keep it going at least once a week, but it's been really busy this week completing a script. So to recap, we're in the middle of what I think is a really important section exploring the meaning of myoho in the mantra we chant, nam myoho renge kyo. I notice I give fully 5 pages to this section which is an indication of how important an understanding of this phrase is to the practice. Anyway, we've reached the cart and horses!! This is an analogy that is often used because it presents such a graphic picture of the relationship between the myo and the ho aspects of our life.
So, our life is the cart and it's pulled along by our myo horse, or our deepest spiritual energy, and our ho horse, our physical life. In general it's true to say that we are accustomed to spending a great deal of time and effort nurturing the strength and the well-being of our ho horse, because of course it is so visible and so accessible to us. We can look at it in the mirror for example and worry about its shape! We can feed it three times a day and take it to the gym to work out and off to play sports to ensure that it is kept fit and healthy and suitably diverted. As a result we tend very much to equate our happiness and our sense of satisfaction with life with how well we are getting on with looking after our ho horse.
By contrast we tend to spend relatively little time, if any, nurturing and exercising our myo horse, because of course it is wholly unseen and and in general has a less powerful presence. The result is a gross imbalance in the pulling power of these two dimensions of our life. The wagon of our life is pulled off strongly in one direction dictated by our physical needs, our strong ho horse. Indeed it is often pulled round in circles, repeating patterns of behaviour, because the spiritual side of our make-up hasn't been nurtured enough to influence, to change that is, our habitual behaviour. We can, as we all know so well, become very much creatures of habit, tending to repeat patterns of thought and behaviour even when they lead to considerable pain and suffering in our lives. People very often for example, go through a whole series of similar relationships each one of which might follow a very similar pattern of rise and fall.
What we need to do, Buddhism tells us, is to become aware of the effects of this gross imbalance between the strength of our physical and spiritual lives, and so allocate more time and energy to keeping both horses, the myo as well as the ho, in a fit and active and healthy state.
That is very much the role that is played by the daily Buddhist practice, it is the regular daily work out for our myo horse.
That's plenty enough for this episode.
Next time we are on to renge.
Hope to see you then.
With all my best wishes,
William
PS The Case for Buddhism is available on Amazon and as a download on Kindle and if you read it and enjoy it, I would be immensely grateful if you would be prepared to put a few words into into the review section. Readers reviews are apparently a very powerful factor in encouraging new readers. And please accept my gratitude in advance!
Monday 8 February 2016
my buddhist blog number 123
Hi Everybody,
We've been exploring the meaning of the mantra nam myoho renge kyo that we chant as a central part of our practice as Nichiren Buddhists. We've talked about nam which is the committal word which has a range of meanings such as I summon up or I make great effort. And we went on to talk about the meaning of myoho which essentailly describes the relationship between the myo or spiritual aspects of our life and the ho or physical aspects. And we touched upon the way in which the regularity of the practice strengthens the vitality of this spiritual diemnsion in our lives. That's basically where we pick up the theme today.
Rather more difficult to accept, indeed one of the most difficult concepts to understand, particularly if you have a background in science I suspect, is the Buddhist belief that all material existence, everything on Earth both animate and inanimate hasa physical and a spiritual aspect. Everything but everything we are told, has both myo and ho; the tree, the rock, the river, the mountain.
That is undoubtedly a difficult idea to take on board, although Buddhism is by no means alone in holding this view. Throughout the length and breadth of human history, artists and poets have been constantly seeking to open our eyes to this view of reality, in all languages and in all cultures. Wordworth for example, the great English romantic poet, when he famously described the myoho of a lake and a bunch of daffodils.
The waves beside them danced but they outdid the sparklin g waves in glee,
A poet could not be but gay,
In such a jocund company,
I gazed...and gazed..but little thought
What wealth the show to me had brought;
For oft when on my couch I lie,
In vacant or in pensive mood,
They flash upon my inner eye
Which is the bliss of solitude,
And then my heart with pleasure fills,
And dances with the daffodils.
Buddhism simply stresses this aspect of the continuity and the close association that runs through all things, so it teaches that we are not separate from, but closely linked to everything around us. Thus in Buddhist terms, statements such as being in harmony with, or being at odds with one's environment are not simply figures of speech. They are held to represent a fundamental truth, a truth that is the basis for the Buddhist principle of oneness of self and environment. Essentially this argues that as we change, as we gradually strengthen and reveal our Buddha nature through our practice, so that change resonates through our environment.
Right. Enough said I think for one day!
I'll be back mid week to continue the thread.
I nust say I'm really enjoying going over the ground again.
I learn somethingnew every time I do it.
Best wishes,
William
PS The Case for Buddhism is available from Amazon and on Kindle.
We've been exploring the meaning of the mantra nam myoho renge kyo that we chant as a central part of our practice as Nichiren Buddhists. We've talked about nam which is the committal word which has a range of meanings such as I summon up or I make great effort. And we went on to talk about the meaning of myoho which essentailly describes the relationship between the myo or spiritual aspects of our life and the ho or physical aspects. And we touched upon the way in which the regularity of the practice strengthens the vitality of this spiritual diemnsion in our lives. That's basically where we pick up the theme today.
Rather more difficult to accept, indeed one of the most difficult concepts to understand, particularly if you have a background in science I suspect, is the Buddhist belief that all material existence, everything on Earth both animate and inanimate hasa physical and a spiritual aspect. Everything but everything we are told, has both myo and ho; the tree, the rock, the river, the mountain.
That is undoubtedly a difficult idea to take on board, although Buddhism is by no means alone in holding this view. Throughout the length and breadth of human history, artists and poets have been constantly seeking to open our eyes to this view of reality, in all languages and in all cultures. Wordworth for example, the great English romantic poet, when he famously described the myoho of a lake and a bunch of daffodils.
The waves beside them danced but they outdid the sparklin g waves in glee,
A poet could not be but gay,
In such a jocund company,
I gazed...and gazed..but little thought
What wealth the show to me had brought;
For oft when on my couch I lie,
In vacant or in pensive mood,
They flash upon my inner eye
Which is the bliss of solitude,
And then my heart with pleasure fills,
And dances with the daffodils.
Buddhism simply stresses this aspect of the continuity and the close association that runs through all things, so it teaches that we are not separate from, but closely linked to everything around us. Thus in Buddhist terms, statements such as being in harmony with, or being at odds with one's environment are not simply figures of speech. They are held to represent a fundamental truth, a truth that is the basis for the Buddhist principle of oneness of self and environment. Essentially this argues that as we change, as we gradually strengthen and reveal our Buddha nature through our practice, so that change resonates through our environment.
Right. Enough said I think for one day!
I'll be back mid week to continue the thread.
I nust say I'm really enjoying going over the ground again.
I learn somethingnew every time I do it.
Best wishes,
William
PS The Case for Buddhism is available from Amazon and on Kindle.
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